Lubricating device for pneumatic tools



June 28, 1932. F. B. HAMERLY I LUBRICATING'DEVICE FOR PNEUMATIC TOOLS Filed June 25, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet l if Cl/7. /0

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LUBRICATING DEVICE FOR PNEUMATIC TOOLS Filed June L25, `1931 2 sheets-sheet 2 A TTORNEY` Patented June 28, 1932 UNITED .STATES PATENT v'OFFICE FRANK B. HAMERLY, F AURORA, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR'TO INDEPENDENT PNEUMA'IIC i TOOL COMPANY, OF CHICAGO,ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE LUBRrcATING DEVICE FOR PNEUMATIG rrooLs Applicatonled .Tune 25,

This invention relates to pneumatic tools and more particularly to lubricating means therefor.

The mainy object of the invention is to provide a lubricating device which can beincorporated in the structure of the tool to hold or contain a supply of lubricant for the working partsof thetool and-automatically dis,-

charge a predetermined amount Vof such lubricant into the air supply of the tool on each starting of the tool on openingi itsthrottle valve.

Another object of the invention is to so constructthe lubricating device that it will automatically recharge itself from the lubricant supply on each closing of the throttle valve so as to have a charge available for discharge into the tool on each opening of the valve. Y

A further object of the invention is to utilize the air pr-essure supplied to the tool on opening the throttle valve for operating the lubricating device in its discharging action. Y I

A. further object of theinvention is to employ a plunger in the lubricating device. for

' controlling the discharge of lubricant into the tool and for replenishing the charge on stopf ping the tool.

Y A further object of the inventionis to have the plunger exposed for operation Vin discharging direction by the action of the air pressure thereon, and be moved in the .opposite direction to recharge the device by spring means which operates-When the air supply to the tool is turned off as by closing the throttle valve. c

The invention consists further in the matf ters hereinafter described vand claimed. f In the accompanying drawings-- Fig. 1 is a side view, partly in section, of a pneumatic tool of the hammer type equipped with a lubricant supplying device of'my invention; c Y

Fig. 2 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view through the upper portion of thev tool to show the lubricant supplying device, the latter beingshown in recharging position;

50 Fig. 3 is a similar view showing the lubri- 1931. serial No. 546,728.

cant supplying device in discharging posi- Vplying device, the latter being shown in recharging position; y

Fig. 6 is a similar view showing the device of Fig. 5 in discharging position; and

Fig. 7 is a transverse sectional viewl taken on line 7-p-7 of Fig. 5. y

In Fig. 1,'1 indicates the barrel of the tool,

2 the'handle at the rear or inner end of the barrel, 3 the chisel or other working element inserted into the front or outer end of the barrel and 4 the hammer piston which by its reciprocation in the barrel delivers the working blows to the chisel 3 in the operation of the tool.

In Fig. 2, 5 indicates the valve mechanism in the barrel for automatically controlling the supply of air pressure to the opposite ends of the barrel, for reciprocating the ham` mer piston 4; therein. The valve mechanism 5 is of the character described and claimed in the application of Reinhold A.A Norling, Serial No. 528,044 and needs no further illustration or description herein except to say of my invention. The device in both of its Y forms', as shown inoFigs. 2 to 4 and 5 to 7, respectively, is held or clamped'in the'barrel against thevalve mechanism 5 by the'han# dlel 2.

In'Figs. 2 to 8, the lubricating device is indicated generally by 8 and is made to have an oil'containing reservoir 9v surrounding the device and which reservoir can be lled with oil or Vother lubricant of the character re;

quired for the-Working parts of the tool through a filling passage 10 in the portion 65 fixture 8 so as to form a stop for the plunger of the handle 2 over the inner end of the barrel. Passage is normally closed by a screw or other plug 11. The device 8 has an upright outside wall 12, a bottom wall 13, and a top wall 14, the latter being preferably made integral with the wall 12 by making such parts of the device in cast Jform. The bottom wall is removably connected to the device, as by screws 15, 15 to the wall 12, so that the interiorV of the. device may be accessible for assembling, cleaning and repair. rlhe top wall 14 has an opening 16 connecting reservoir 9 with filling passage 10, as shown inl Fig. 2. The portion of handle 2 over the inner end of the barrel 1 is provided'on its under side with a recess 17to receive thej upper end of the device 8 for centering the same in the barreland with respect .to the control valve 5. The recess 17 also holdsrthe" device in spaced .relation to the surrounding wall of the barrel sol that the exhaust chambery 18 about the valve 5 may continue up to and about the de,- vice 8. The barrel 1 is provided inits outer wall Ywith one ormore ports 19 connecting the exhaust chamber 18 with'the atmosphere.

The device 8V is provided` with a mid-sec` tion 20 cast integral with the top wall laf and extending down throughthe reservoir 9 to the bottom wall 1.3. Section 2O is provided with an aXial passage 21 extending' from top to bottom of the device 'andconnecting at its upper endl with themain pressureA supply passage 22 inthe handle 2. Passage 21 connects at Aits lower end with a port 23 in bottom wall 13, 'which port connects with the main inlet port 21lin the valve assembly 5', as shown in Fig. 2. By this arrangement, air pressure may enter the tool to reciprocate the. piston l'therein when the manually operable throttle valve 25 in the handle 2 of the tool isdepressedy or moved intoopen position'.` The compressed air for operating the tool is supplied thereto through the hanCllG by a hose 26 connecting thehandle on the advanceside of the valve, as shown in Fig. 1. K Q f The mid-'section 2O of 'the device 8 isprovided with twochambers 27, 28 arranged on opposite sides ofV the passage 21 and substank tially rparallel thereto, Yas shown in Figures 2, 3 and. 4l.v Located in chamber 27 is a plunger having an enlarged head? 30 at its upper end and which headis exposed through the open upper end of chamber 27 to thevair pressure supplied to the tool through the inlet passagev22v in the handle. The handle section over the barrel 1`is recessed as at 31 about, the.passage21 and saidrecess is made large enough in diameter to extend over a portion ofhead 30 of the plunger so-that the latter will be exposed for depression bythe air pressure admitted to the tool on opening the throttle kvalvej25. The portion of the handle'fsection over the remaining part of the head 30 is flushv with Vthe upper end or the when raised by a coil spring 32 arranged about the stem of the plunge-r below the head. The lower end of the spring rests on a seat 33 within the chamber 27 and arranged above the port means to be presently described for connecting the lower portion of the chamber 27 with the reservoirv 9 and airpassage 21, respectively. The portion of the chamber 27 vabove the seat 33 is substantially equal in diameter tothe head' 30 of the plunger. The portion of the chamber 2-7 below the seat 33 is smaller in diameter, being equal to that of the stem of the plunger, the stem having a snug ht in such portion of the chamber to prevent, the leakage of lubricant about the S21-me- Teailrrer enlarged ,Portion of the :chamber 27` below the head 30 is constantly connected with the exhaust side of the tool to permit movement of the plunger in `opposite directions.V This connection i'srnade by cornmunicating passages 34e, 35 in the section V2O and bottom wall 13, respectively, of the device 8. The passages 34 open into the enlargedY part of the chamber 27 Vj ust above the seat 33, while the passages 35 open into the exhaust chamber 18 through the peripheral edge of wall13, as shown in Fig. 4.

Thelower portion of the plunger 29 is provided with an axialv passage 36l which opens through the bottom of the plunger as shown in. Figs. 2 and 3. The upper end of the passage 36 is connected by aY radial port 37 with an angularv groove 3 8 inI theV stem of the plunger and encircling the same as shown in Figs. 2, 3 and 1; SectionE 2Q-is provided with two ports 39,740, one connecting; chamber 27 withpreservoir 9 and the otherconnecting. the chamber air-passage 2 1. Ports 39' and 40 are spaced apart lengthwise of the chamber for alternate opening and closing by the plunger in its endwise movement.

Chamber28 opens at its upper end intov recess 31y andfcontains an. inwardly opening check valve 41 normally held toits. seatby spring 472 andy closing port, 13, which when open connects reservoir 9 with the air pres sure supplied'to the tool. By this arrangement, the oilro'r lubricantvin. the reservoir is underV pressure-and thus willbe supplied to chamber 2 7 below' plunger 2 9, in any position in which thet'ool may be held. The lubricating device o'Figs. 2 to L oper'-` atesvas follows r: Whenthe throttle valve -25 is closed, the tool yis not under pressure,- and spring 32: raises plunger to open port 39 whereby the-lower end of chamber 27V as evacuated' bythe plunger may fill with lubricant from reservoir 9. The amount of' lubricant taken into thechainber is'limited to the portion of the chamber freed by the plunger and thus a predetermined' charge-is collected for supply tothe worliglparts'o'f the tool whenl the. plunger is depressed.; This occurs as soon as` thel throttle valve 25 is opened. The airpressurefentering,the-tool will act on the head 30 of the plunger to depress it, opening port 40 and allowing the plunger todischarge the previously collected charge of lubricant into the air passage 21, where the lubricant will be picked up by the air stream and be carried therewith into the barrel of the tool past the valve 5 to lubricate the movable parts of the valve as well as the piston 4. When the throttle valve 25 is closed, the plunger 29 is raised and another charge of lubricant is collected in the chamber 27 for subsequent discharge into the air stream on the nent opening of the throttle valve. As a tool of the character herein shown is only run at short intervals, between each opening and closing of the throttle valve, the lubricant may be injected into the tool in predetermined amounts or charges of the character described, as each charge will well lubricate the working parts of the tool during the short intervals that the tool is actually run. With the amounts of lubricant supplied to the tool controlled to measured charges, wasting of the lubricant is prevented, as there is no supply of lubricant to the tool when the tool is not in operation. By automatically supplying pre-determined amounts of lubricant to the air stream, it is possible to secure the proper amount of oil for lubrication instead of depending on an ejector action which is likely to become clogged and therefore cut orf the `oil supply to the tool. Moreover, by having the lubricating device operated by the pressure supplied to the tool, certainty of action is secured with sufficient force developed to discharge the collected charge of lubricant into the air stream on each starting of the tool. Furthermore, the structure shown and described is simple in construction and operation and is of a character which may be readily and easily embodied in the interior of the barrel of the tool without materially increasing the overall length of the barrel or changing its general appearance.

In the form of the device shown in Figs. 5 to 7, the plunger 44 is arranged to be raised instead of lowered when discharging the collected charge of lubricant into the air stream.V The chamber 45 for the plunger is connected at its lower end with the air passage 46 by a port 47. The lower face of the plunger is provided with a rib or projection 48 so that when the plunger is against the upper face ofk the bottom wall 49 of the device 50, there is suiicient clearance between the bottom wall and the lower end of the plunger to permit the air pressure to enter below the plunger for raising the same. The reservoir 51 is connected with the chamber 45 by a slot like port 52, which, as shown in Fig. 5, opens into the chamber 45 between the heads 53, 54 at the opposite ends of the plunger when the latter is in its lowermost position. The lower head 53is the larger and opens the port 52 when the plungeris lowered by its spring 55, and

chamber 45 above head 54 is vented to theV exhaust side of the tool by passages 57, 58 in the mid-section 59 and bottom wall 49, of the A `fixture 50, as shown in'Fig. 7.

The rest of the structure shown inFigs'. 5 to 7 is'the same as the corresponding` parts shown in Figs. 2 to 4, and like parts are indicated by like reference characters. In both forms of devices, the device recharges when the throttle valve is closed and discharges when the valve is opened. v

The details of structure and arrangement of parts shown and described may be variously changed and modiiedwithout departing from the spirit and scope of my'invention, except as pointed out in the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

l. In a pneumatic tool, a throttle valve for controlling admission of pressure fluid into the tool, a lubricant containing reservoir, a chamber having larger and smaller portions, inlet and discharge ports for the smaller portion of lthe chamber with the inlet port connected with the reservoir, a plunger having a head inthe larger portion of the chamber and a stem in the smaller portion thereof to control the opening and closing of said ports, spring means in the larger portion of the chamber and engaging the head of the plunger to act thereon on the closing of the throttle .valve to move the plunger in a directionto close the discharge port and open therinlet-port whereby the chamber may take in a charge of lubricant from the reservoir, the head of the plunger being acted on by the pressure iuid admitted in the tool on the opening of the throttle valve for moving the plunger in a direction to close the inlet port and open the discharge for discharging the lubricant from the chamber through said discharge port into the path of the pressure fluid supplied to the tool, said stem having a passage and connected annular groove for connecting the smaller portion of the chamber with the discharge port when the plunger opens the same, and means for venting the large portion of the chamber occupied by the springr to the exhaust side of the tool.

2. In a pneumatic tool having a barrel with the working parts of the tool therein, a handle secured to and closing one end of the barrel, a throttle valve in the handle for controlling the admission of pressure Huid into the barreL'and a lubricating devicefor the tool located in the barrelbetween the handle and Working parts of the tool, said device having a surrounding Wall and a. mid-section 5 forming a lubricant containing reservoir,said mid-section having va pressure iuid passage and a lubricant containing chamber, the lat ter serving to collect a predetermined charge of lubricant from the reservoir on the closing k}.0 of the throttle' valve, and a plunger for the chamber and operable by the pressure iiuid admitted into the barrel on the opening of the throttle valve for discharging the previously. collected charge of lubricant from the chamber into said pressure fluid passage for lubricating the yWorking parts of the tool, said plunger having its end adjacent the handle partially Yexposed to the action of the pressure fluid and its remaining portion arranged for Contact with the handle to provide a stop for the plunger.

3. A lubricating device-for use in pneuL matic tools, comprising a mid-section, an outside vvall surrounding the same, top and bottorn Walls closing the space between the outside Wall and the mid-section and forming therewith a'lubricant containing reservoir, said mid-section having a lubricant collecting chamber and two pressure liuid passages, one

opening through the top and bottom Walls and the other opening through the top Wall and into the reservoir, inlet and discharge ports connecting the chamber with the reservoir and the first of said pressure fluid passages, respectively, a plunger operable in Ysaid chamber for alternately opening and closing said ports, and spring means for moving the plunger in a direction for opening the inlet port and closing the discharge port,

said plunger being exposed for operation by the pressure iuid supplied to the tool for moving the plunger in the opposite direction, and check valve for the other pressure fluid passage. e

.In testimony whereof I aiiix my signature;

. FRANK B HAMERLY- 

